On March 11, 2019, the Georgia Supreme Court handed down an important decision in First Acceptance Insurance Company of Georgia, Inc. v. Hughes, which further clarifies the circumstances under Georgia law for when an insurer may be liable for bad faith in refusing to settle a claim within policy limits.
In Hughes, the insured caused a multi-vehicle accident and resulting injury to five individuals. An attorney who represented two of those individuals – Julie An and ... Keep Reading »

Several months ago we blogged about the duty to defend advertising injury claims under commercial general liability (CGL) policies, noting that many courts continue to struggle with the practical application of basic duty to defend principles in this context. The court in that particular case had no such issues. In a more recent decision, however, the potential complexities of this task were on full display. See High Point Design LLC v. LM Insurance Corp. et ... Keep Reading »

In Century Surety Company v. Dana Andrew (Dec. 13, 2018), the Nevada Supreme Court issued an opinion regarding whether, under Nevada law, the liability of an insurer that has breached its duty to defend, but not acted in bad faith, is capped at the policy limit plus any costs incurred by the insured in mounting a defense, or whether the insurer is liable for all losses consequential to the insurer's breach.
Ryan Pretner ("Pretner") and Pretner's guardian (Respondents) ... Keep Reading »

If you’re a football fan, you probably know that the NFL, despite its continued success, has had to address a range of problems and scandals over the past few years. Those problems range from off-season domestic violence incidents to on-the-field issues involving free speech by players and blown calls by officials. Indeed, the professional football world is currently up in arms over a bad no-call during a key play in a conference championship game that may have cost the ... Keep Reading »

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit recently closed the book on litigation in which GEICO had been involved since 2010, holding that the granting of a retrial—which resulted in a GEICO victory after an initial verdict of more than $5 million had been rendered against the insurer—was warranted and appropriate. See Joshua Moore v. GEICO General Ins. Co., No. 17-13655 (11th Cir. Dec. 14, 2018). The story began with a rejected GEICO settlement offer following ... Keep Reading »

Can the terms of a warranty impact the scope of coverage provided by an insurance policy even if the policy does not explicitly incorporate the terms of the warranty? The answer to this question appears to be yes, at least under New York law, according to the recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in Patriarch Partners, LLC v. Axis Ins. Co., No. 17-3022, 2018 WL 6431024 (2d Cir. Dec. 6, 2018).
Insured Issues Warranty To Insurer Related To ... Keep Reading »

A federal judge in Connecticut recently dismissed claims against insurers related to their denial of a claim by two homeowners whose home’s foundation was crumbling. The case, Hyde v. Allstate Ins. Co., No. 3:18-cv-00031 (D. Conn. Dec. 4, 2018), marks the latest development in what is quickly becoming a major source of litigation.
When the Hydes tried to sell their house in 2016, they discovered that the home’s foundation was crumbling. Their foundation had allegedly ... Keep Reading »

The frustration property owners must feel when the actions of another cause them to no longer be able to use their property as originally intended is certainly palpable, but when the property is not damaged and still can be used for other purposes, is there a covered loss of use of tangible property? The California Court of Appeal answered this question affirmatively in Thee Sombrero, Inc. v. Scottsdale Insurance Company, No. E67505 (Cal. App. Ct. Oct. 25, 2018).
Thee ... Keep Reading »

In a recent decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit observed that under California law, there was an unresolved question as to whether a commercial general liability (“CGL”) insurance policy covers an employer-insured for negligently failing to prevent an employee’s intentional misconduct. In essence, it was unclear whether such an incident constituted an “occurrence” that only covers “accidents,” as an intentional act cannot, by definition, be an ... Keep Reading »

Third-party liability policies often include aggregation clauses. As the name suggests, these clauses aggregate "related claims" or "interrelated wrongful acts" into one claim or occurrence. This provides the parties with certainty as to when a claim was "first made" or when an occurrence "first occurred." These clauses often lead to litigation, with carriers and policyholders asserting narrow or broad readings of the language, depending on the desired result.
A trio ... Keep Reading »

About PropertyCasualtyFocus

Carlton Fields publications should not be construed as legal advice on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general information and educational purposes only, and should not be relied on as if it were advice about a particular fact situation. The distribution of this publication is not intended to create, and receipt of it does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship with Carlton Fields. This publication may not be quoted or referred to in any other publication or proceeding without the prior written consent of the firm, to be given or withheld at our discretion. To request reprint permission for any of our publications, please contact us. The views set forth herein are the personal views of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the firm. This site may contain hypertext links to information created and maintained by other entities. Carlton Fields does not control or guarantee the accuracy or completeness of this outside information, nor is the inclusion of a link to be intended as an endorsement of those outside sites. This site may be considered attorney advertising in some jurisdictions.